Amazon Eyes $2-Billion Stake In Bharti Airtel, Reuters Says
Amazon.com Inc. is in talks with Bharti Airtel Ltd. to buy stake worth $2 billion in India's second-largest telecom firm, Reuters reported citing three people aware of the matter.
The talks are in an early stage and deal terms could change, the report said, adding it's also possible that an agreement is not reached at all.
The potential deal highlights U.S. technology giants' increasing interest in India's battered telecom sector. Reliance Industries Ltd., the parent of Bharti Airtel's rival Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd., has so far raised almost $10 billion from five global investors—Facebook Inc., KKR & Co., Silver Lake Partners, Vista Equity Partners and General Atlantic—by selling stake in Jio Platforms Ltd. Billionaire Mukesh Ambani is also in talks with Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund for a potential investment in his digital asset.
Also, the Financial Times reported that Alphabet Inc.'s Google is considering acquiring a stake in Vodafone Idea Ltd.
An Amazon spokesperson told Reuters that the company does not offer comments on speculation. Bharti Airtel, too, said it routinely works with digital players to bring products, content and services to customers.
BloombergQuint has not independently verified the contents of the Reuters' report.
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